Archive for the ‘Defence’ Category

Four months into his tenure as defence minister, Harjit Sajjan, (above) the former colonel who battled the Taliban in Afghanistan, still has little to say about what defence policy on his watch will look like.

During a 90-minute grilling Tuesday morning by MPs, including Liberals, on the House of Commons defence committee, Sajjan was asked several questions about Canada’s defence policy. He hemmed, hawwed, and stumbled through his testimony, declining to provide any details on the CF-18 replacement process; the use of armed drones, Canada’s cyberwarfare abilities; how Canada can help defend North America against Russian aggression or any other topics he was asked about.

Sajjan’s excuse? Canada’s defence policy is under review, a review that will not be complete until the end of the year. Read more…

And that’s why pollsters continue to find the electorate locked in what amounts to a three-way tie.

But on Monday night in Toronto, it was all about foreign policy. Three leaders were on stage in a debate but the contest I was interested in was NDP Leader Thomas Mulcair and Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau. If either one can harness the anti-Harper vote, then Harper and the Conservatives are in some trouble.

Here’s what General Jonathan Vance, who started as Chief of Defence Staff on Monday, sent out this morning to every single member of the Canadian Forces:

Ours is a proud heritage of selfless service to Canada often under the most extreme conditions and for the most honourable of causes, the protection of our citizens and the security of our world. In so doing we assume enormous risks and many have made the ultimate sacrifice or have been left maimed and wounded. We face adversaries and danger every day, and there are many who would do us harm. It is therefore abhorrent to me that anyone would mistreat another by bringing harm or the fear of harm through assault or harassment. I lament the fact that there exist within our ranks those that would bully, degrade or assault others, especially another member of the CAF or a member of the Defence Team. Moreover, to attack the dignity of any member by sexual assault and harassment serves only to weaken our force when we need to be strong, and serves to make some feel less worthwhile when we know that everybody is important. Indeed, to treat each other well, to treat everybody with respect and honour is a military virtue and has always been a part of our culture. We must ensure it remains so.

I will not engage in any discussion or debate about the degree or severity of sexual misconduct in the CAF. It does not matter, for even a single incident is too many, and even unintentional harm or offense is unacceptable. This is a serious matter. Whether you are a leader, a subordinate or a peer, any form of harmful sexual behaviour undermines who we are, is a threat to morale, is a threat to operational readiness and is a threat to this institution. It stops now. Consider this my first order to all members of the CAF. Read more…

Prime Minister Stephen Harper talks with Lieutenant-General Jonathan Vance in Harper’s Langevin Block office in Ottawa April 27, 2015 after Harper had announced Vance will be appointed chief of the defence staff. (REUTERS/Chris Wattie)

The Canadian Armed Forces, Prime Minister Stephen Harper said on Friday, “have been central to the story of our country.”

It is an arguable point but that argument is for another time and another place.

What is inarguable, though, is that only a few commanders of those armed forces have ever been central to the story of our country.

Harper likes to date the creation of Canada to the War of 1812 and, in that conflict, we have a general, Sir Isaac Brock, who gained extra notoriety for his battlefield death while defending the property of Britain against American invaders. Other historians might look back to that great duel on the Plains of Abraham when the commanders of both the British and French forces —- Wolfe and Montcalm — also died in battle. Read more…

Earlier this month, I wrote a column for our papers in which I argued that Canada has done a lousy job of living up to the commitment we made to our NATO allies to spend at least 2 per cent of our GDP on defence. I put together the chart above drawing on data published by the Department of Finance. Some excerpts from that column: Read more…